Various portable or small mirror assemblies have been devised which are well suited for mounting and use in a variety of locations. One example of such mirrors is the shower mirror, which is most often used by men who shave in the shower. Small mirrors, however, have been used in a variety of other applications by both men and women, including mirrors mounted on locker walls, or in offices on file cabinets or wall partitions, and mirrors used in a variety of locations in the home.
Shower-mounted mirrors have several advantages, but prior shower mirrors constructions also have been found to have several disadvantages. One problem that is repeatedly encountered is the tendency of shower mirrors to condense water vapor on them or to fog when the shower is running. Another problem exists in connection with the difficulty of mounting shower mirrors in a shower, which typically is an all-tile environment or a continuous metal or plastic shell. Still further, repositioning of a shower mirror can be difficult, and mirror breakage can pose a safety hazard.
Several rather complex approaches have been devised to attempt to keep shower mirrors from becoming fogged. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,557,003 discloses a shower mirror construction in which the mirror is mounted in a housing that forms a plenum behind the mirror. The shower water flows through the plenum to heat the back of the mirror and thereby the front surface, which prevents fogging. The water is discharged from the shower head after passing through the plenum. Other examples of prior art shower mirrors which attempt to solve the fogging problem are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,072,397; 3,594,063 and 3,708,218.
The shower mirrors referenced above are all mounted by relatively complex mechanical mounting structures that relatively permanently affix the mirror in the shower. Moreover, while adjustable mounting structures can be provided, the amount of adjustment of the position of the mirrors inherently is relatively limited. In most instances, the user must adjust his or her position relative to the mirror and the light sources available in the shower.
As also will be seen from the shower mirrors disclosed in the above set forth patents, the mechanical mounting apparatus can be somewhat difficult to install. Moreover, such mounting apparatus can require penetrating the tile with fasteners, which, if they must be repositioned, leave unsightly bore holes that can be the source of moisture damage. Mirror mounting assemblies also add significantly to the overall cost of the shower mirror. But, mechanical shower mirror mounts do tend to have the advantage of securing the mirror in a sufficiently positive fashion that mirror breakage will not occur.
More generally, mounting of mirrors to file cabinets, lockers or room partitions can have many of the same problems found in connection with shower mirrors. Thus, the mounting structure can damage the wall to which the mirror is to be mounted and moving the mirror can be tedious and time consuming.
Portable shower mirrors have also been devised. Such mirrors have been formed from a plastic sheet that has a vapor-deposited reflective surface on one or both sides or from a reflective metallic sheet. These mirrors are hand-held or propped on a ledge or horizontal support surface in the shower. Such portable mirrors have the advantage of infinite adjustability and safety, but they usually require the user to employ one hand to hold the mirror or to have a shower structure which coincidentally has a ledge or horizontal support surface at the correct height and location.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a mirror which can be easily and rapidly mounted to virtually any wet, smooth, flat surface, can be easily adjusted from position-to-position, and when used in a shower, can be easily de-fogged.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a movable mirror which can be temporarily mounted on a wet, smooth flat wall, such as a metallic locker or file cabinet wall or a glass door, window or video screen, without any mechanical support means.
Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a movable mirror which is portable and can be mounted to a wet wall in a manner freeing both hands of the user.
Still a further object of the present invention is to provide a movable mirror which does not pose a safety hazard, which is economical to produce, and which can be easily removed from the wall on which it is mounted and used in other areas.
The movable mirror and method of the present invention have other objects and features of advantage which will become apparent from, or are set forth in more detail in, the accompanying drawings in the following Best Mode Of Carrying Out The Invention.